Coronavirus Concerns: Events Canceled in Hawai‘i
Events at city parks, shows at the Blaisdell Center and a movie theater chain join our running list of places closed and events canceled in Honolulu as a precaution because of the COVID-19 situation across the world.
Murphy’s bar & Grill’s st. patrick’s day celebration is one of several events that have been canceled.
photo: David Croxford
Updated March 17, 6 p.m.
With the number of presumptive cases of COVID-19 in Hawai‘i growing to 10, in addition to school, state and county officials, event planners are taking extra precautions. Malls, libraries and more are also putting public programs and events on hold. You can see those below our list of cancellations. If you have one to report, email us at web@honolulumagazine.com. Here is our current list.
SEE ALSO: Tracking Coronavirus in Hawai‘i
Locations Closed:
The YWCA’s Laniākea and Kokokahi locations will be closed from March 18 through April 3. All programs, classes and events scheduled during that time will also be canceled.
Waikīkī Aquarium will be closed until further notice. Evening events will also be canceled.
Hawai‘i State Public Libraries will close all locations March 18 through 31. Bookmobile services will also be suspended. All events were previously canceled. People with books out will receive two automatic renewals for all items that are eligible.
Hawai‘i Theatre shows for March and April will be rescheduled for later in the year.
‘Iolani Palace will close March 18 until further notice.
All state parks and monuments on O‘ahu and Kaua‘i, various parks on the other islands. See the full list on the state Department of Natural Land and Resources website.
Hanauma Bay will close until further notice.
Regal Theatres will close on March 17 until further notice.
Ala Moana Center is scaling back hours. Starting Monday, March 13, the mall will be open from noon to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday, and noon to 6 p.m. on Sunday. Various stores including J. Crew, Anthropologie, the Apple Store and the Disney Store have shut down nationwide for various periods of time.
Starting March 17, Royal Hawaiian Center reduce its hours to 11 a.m. to 8 p.m. daily. All classes and entertainment have been canceled.
Kawaiaha‘o Church is closing for 60 days effective Friday, March 13. Services, youth services and athletics in the gym will all be canceled.
Sea Life Park is closing on March 17 until further notice.
Hawai‘i Children’s Discovery Center will close March 15 through March 30. The spring break camp will still go on.
Polynesian Cultural Center will close March 16–31. Anyone who purchased a ticket directly from PCC can receive a refund or reschedule the visit. Its AgDay in March and World Fireknife Championship in May are also canceled. The Hukilau Marketplace will stay open.
Hawai‘i State Art Museum will close March 16 until further notice. All public programs scheduled for March and April have been canceled.
University of Hawai‘i announced Thursday, March 12, that classes will only be held online when students return from spring break, which is scheduled for March 16 through 20.
The Japanese Cultural Center of Hawai‘i is canceling all docent-led tours and volunteer activities through April. JCCH’s gift shop, exhibits, Hono‘uli‘uli Education Center and the Tokioka Heritage Resource Center are closed to the public until March 31. No donations will be accepted during this time.
The Public Access Room at the state Capitol is closed until March 18. An employee’s roommate is a ride-hailing-service driver. A passenger from a ride on March 4 tested positive for COVID-19 after she returned home to Canada. The employee and roommate are both in self-quarantine as a precaution.
Starbucks locations are not accepting personal cups. People will still receive a 10-cent discount for bringing one in. The Curb in Kaimukī has also suspended personal cups but will apply the discount if you have it with you.
The Pearl Harbor National Memorial is temporarily closed. The Pearl Harbor Aviation Museum will also close March 18 until further notice.
Events Suspended or Postponed:
The Hawai‘i International Film Festival Spring Showcase will be postponed until the end of August.
Da Shop has postponed all events scheduled over the next 30 days.
All University of Hawai‘i games are suspended.
Kāhala Mall has put a hold on all programs and events, including Toddler Time, and postponed Easter Bunny photographs.
Kapi‘olani Community College’s farmers markets, held Tuesday evenings and Saturday mornings, are suspended until further notice.
Weekends, March 13 through March 22—Oriental Faddah and Son performances are postponed. windward.hawaii.edu
March 19—The musical comedy Desperate Measures will be postponed until May 14–31 at Mānoa Valley Theatre.
March 21—Noodle Festival has been postponed until the summer. No specific date has been announced. noodlefesthawaii.com
March 27—Emo Nite at The Republik has been rescheduled to July 24.
March 28—Honolulu on Tap is postponed to Oct. 31. Tickets will be honored or people can receive refunds where they purchased their tickets.
March 29—Taste of Hongwanji Bazaar. This will be rescheduled for a date in October. hawaiibetsuin.org
April 5—The Hapalua—Hawai‘i’s Half Marathon will be postponed. No date has yet been set. thehapalua.com
April 25—Waikīkī Spam Jam will be postponed to another date. spamjamhawaii.com
May 9—Diana Ross at the Blaisdell Arena.
June–Festival of the Pacific Arts & Culture. Organizers say the 11-day festival will be postponed until 2021. No date has yet been set. festpachawaii.org
Events Canceled:
The City and County of Honolulu is canceling all public events on city property. This includes people's open markets, shows at the Blaisdell Center and Easter egg hunts. City parks will stay open.
All workshops at the Hālawa Xeriscape Garden through the month April.
Honolulu Neighborhood Board meetings are canceled until further notice.
March 15 & 17–Family Sunday and Art After Dark are among the public events canceled by the Honolulu Museum of Art. All Shangri La tours, classes at the museum school, films at the Doris Duke Theatre and talks and tours are also canceled.
March 17–Murphy’s Bar & Grill St. Patrick’s Day Block Party. Murphy’s will be open for service that day.
Some family activities and locations are also closing because of coronavirus concerns. See our updated list on honolulufamily.com.
March 18—Hawai‘i Symphony Orchestra community concert on the lānai of the Blaisdell.
March 20—100th annual Kamehameha Schools Song Contest.
March 20–Hawaiian Scottish Festival & Highland Games are canceled. The Grand Scotch Tour is still set to be held on March 20, 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. at the Plaza Club.
March 21 and 22—Hawai‘i Symphony Orchestra’s Classic Kahane Plays Beethoven. The symphony orchestra will exchange tickets for any other performance this season or offer credit. You can also donate the ticket price back to the HSO.
March 21–AccesSurf’s Party Wave fundraiser.
March 23 and 28–Screening of A Tale of Samurai Cooking at the Japanese Cultural Center Hawai‘i.
March 28—Prince Kūhiō Day Parade and Ho‘olaule‘a in Kapolei.
April 1—Jimmy Eat World at The Republik.
April 12–April 18—Merrie Monarch Festival. On the announcement on Facebook, Merrie Monarch president Luana Kawelu says, “This was such a hard decision to make, but we could not risk the health and wellbeing of our community, hālau participants, vendors and the thousands of people who attend Merrie Monarch every year.”
April 17 and 18–‘Iolani Fair.
May 6–9—World Fireknife Championship will be canceled for the year. The Polynesian Cultural Center will also be closed from Monday, March 16 through the end of the month.
Past Events:
March 6-8–Honolulu Festival, various locations. honolulufestival.com
March 6-8–William S. Richardson School of Law’s Environmental Law Program. Travel restrictions affected scheduled guests. The event is planned now for sometime in the fall.
March 10–Mariah Carey concert. Promoters say people can redeem their tickets for Carey’s concert at the Blaisdell on Nov. 28. Those who do not want to see the Christmas-themed show need to contact Ticketmaster or the Blaisdell Box Office by March 31 for reimbursement.
March 13–Mid-Pacific Institute’s Ho‘olaule‘a.
March 14 and 15–Society of Children's Book Writer and Illustrator's Hawai‘i conference.
March 14—Tribute to the Troops at Polynesian Cultural Center. USO Hawai‘i’s third annual event honoring service members will be postponed. The USO has also suspended operations at all U.S. airports.
March 14—Mom Made Market. Instead, the vendors will have an Instagram sale the weekend of March 14. Find details on Instagram @themommademarkethawaii. Ward Village has canceled all events for now including the cinema, yoga and fitness in the park. The Kaka‘ako Farmers Market is still on for now.
March 14—St. Patrick’s Day Celebration at Salt at Our Kaka‘ako. Restaurants, however, will remain open and offer St. Patrick’s Day specials.
March 14—Susan G. Komen Pink Tie Ball. It will be rescheduled for the summer. komenhawaii.org
March 14–Aloha Hawai‘i Foodbank Great Chefs Fight Hunger. A new date has not yet been set. hawaiifoodbank.org
